Inside Maya Hart
by lauraosnes
Summary: 'I have nobody at home who helps me with my homework.' / Maya Hart may seem strong to everyone, but on the inside, she's breaking. This is why.
1. Chapter 1

hey people of the Girl Meets World fandom. I'm in love with the new series and I've watched the pilot like fifty times and I've watched 'Girl Meets Sneak Attack' about twenty times. I love everything about the show but Maya's home-life interests me greatly and I want to write it my own way. So, I hope you guys like this story and please review. Enjoy!

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><p>Maya's POV<p>

Waking up on this particular Monday, I wasn't exactly beaming with happiness. I mean, have you ever met a child who was happy to be up at 6 on a Monday after a weekend of sleeping in? It's not the only reason I'm grouchy, but it's the one I'll be telling people. Once I force myself out of the bed, I make my way over to my closet. Hmmm, too drab. Not long enough sleeve. Too plaid. Ew, why do I even own this? Finally, I spot the outfit I want; A white and black striped three quarter sleeved top and a pair of light wash jeans, topped of with a red faux leather jacket and and my pair of black studded converse. I take my hair out of the braid I put it in the night before and BAM, natural waves. After dabbing on some makeup to make myself look prettier (and other reasons), I'm ready.

I head downstairs to the main area in my lovely apartment. The room isn't a disaster area, which much mean he's not home yet. Either that or mom had some extra time that morning to clean up whatever mess he made this time. Speaking of mom, I spot her in the kitchen, jamming things into her purse.

"Morning Mom," I greet, walking over to her. She jumps, looking up. Seeing it's only me, she sighs and continues jamming things into her purse. Based off her uniform for her waitress job at the diner and the shirt and vest she's jamming into her bag, I'm guessing she's working all day and won't be back till probably eight or nine tonight.

"Hey sweetheart, listen, I'm working a double shift at the diner today and then I have a shift at the general store, so I won't be home till eight at the earliest. There's easy mac in the cabinets and I'm just a call away if you need me," my mom says, not looking at me but focusing on her purse. I know she's only saying the call thing just to seem like a good mom. I know if I call her while she's working, she just tell me if I'm hurt or injured to call 911 and if it's not 911 worthy, then it's not worth calling her.

"Ok mom, work hard. Oh, is he, um, home yet?" I ask, not looking at my mom when I ask this. She doesn't need to see the fear in my eyes at the thought that he could walk in with her not being here. She'd feel bad and blame herself for putting us in this situation and then start making promises that we both know she won't keep.

"No sweetie, but I'd hurry if you want to miss him. I have to run, but remember," my mom says, walking over to me and moving my head so I'm looking at her, "This isn't a permanent situation. This just a little bump in the road. I love you and have a good day at school." My mom kisses me on and grabs her purse and leaves the house. A bump in the road, yeah, I'm pretty sure most bumps don't last for seven years.

Knowing I need to hurry, I open every cabinet until I find the box of granola bars. Grabbing a bar, I quickly rip open the wrapper and take a huge bite. Walking over to the fridge, I look through it until I find the milk and pour myself a glass, taking a sip before taking another bite of the granola. Looking at the clock, I know I need to hurry up so I stuff the rest of my breakfast into my pocket and pour the milk into the sink. I rush into the living room and grab my bag. I'm good, I'm...

The door to the apartment opens and my lovely step father walks in. Ah, so close! I tense at the smell of him, a mix of beer and smoke. He stumbles in, drunk. I look at the ground, hoping that maybe if I stay still then he won't see me. No such luck.

"Hey, shouldn't you be on the way to school," he says, walking over, his words all jumbled and slurred, his walk shaky. He almost trips over the coffee table, but catches himself before he falls.

"I was just leaving now," I say, my voice barely over a whisper. I really hope he can't hear the fear in my voice. He reaches me and grabs my chin, forcing my head up.

"Well, then I guess you'd better hurry. I'd hate for you to be late. But I better not catch you at this house after 6:45 after today, understand," he says, squeezing by chin pretty hard. Breathe Maya, just get out of this. In a minute he'll be upstairs and you'll be on your way to Riley's. Just answer him and you'll be out of here.

"Yes sir," I answer, hoping that's good enough for him. He nods and releases his hold on me, walking up stairs, grumbling about something. Once he vanishes form my view, I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in. I grab my bag and rush over to the mirror by the door. Ok, good, no marks or anything. That'll save me time. But that stupid panic feeling that sits in my stomach won't leave.

"OK, Maya, you're fine. No new marks, no bruises, nothing like that. This is good, this is really good. Come on Maya, get a hold of yourself. This is ok, you're ok. You're stronger than this. To everyone outside of this apartment, you are strong. Show them how strong you are, you're stronger then this! Be strong, show the world that you're a strong person who can do anything they want," I tell myself, trying to convince myself. And I guess it works cause that jittery feeling leaves and I feel ready to face everyone.

I put the strong mask on and walk out the door, ready to face the world.

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><p>So, I hope you guys liked the first chapter of the story. What do you think about Maya's mom? Her step father? What do you think will happen? Tell me in a review. And if you like to role-play, then check out my GMW role-play forum. And if you want to see what Maya's outfit looks like, there will be a link up on my profile in a minute or two.<p>

QOTD- What are you most looking forward to in this season of GMW? Tell me in a review.

Until next time...


	2. Chapter 2

hey everyone, i'm glad you guys liked the last chapter. Thank you to everyone who reviewed and favorited and followed, you guys made me feel really bad about not updated, but all the support on the last chapter was awesome. i hope you like this one as well. sorry it took a while, but i couldn't decide if i wanted to do the episodes or not, but i decided to not do the whole episode, but do little scenes not included that with help lead to the main storyline. that's not confusing, is it? anyway, enjoy!

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><p>Maya's POV<p>

Hopping off the subway at Riley's stop, I walk a little ways down the street to her apartment building. It's not that far from the station and even if it was it was, I wouldn't mind. Riley lives in one of the nice parts of the city. The part that has trees on the sidewalks and safe areas for children to play without the fear of getting robbed or beaten up. It's a nice change from the neighborhood my family resides in. Not that my neighborhood is the worst, cause there are plenty that make mine look like heaven on earth. But it's not the place for children to play hopscotch.

"Maya," I say into the buzzer when I arrive at the apartment building.

"Come right up," Riley's voice says through the intercom and I'm buzzed in. I walk up the stairs to the apartment and walk right in.

"Sup peeps," I say, walking over to the kitchen table and sitting next to Riley.

"Maya, oatmeal," Mrs. Matthews says as I sit down, placing a bowl in front of me. I know better to argue with her, so I just eat it. After we finish, Riley and I head to the subway to go to school. The ride isn't as eventful as it was the day before, but it's still fun to watch Riley try to get the hang of things. She seems kind of upset Lucas isn't on the subway, but it gives us some time to talk about him without him or Mr. Matthews around.

"So, you have any dreams last night about a Texas boy?" I ask, nudging her with my shoulder. Riley's face turns a light red at the subject of farm boy.

"What, no, of course not. That's crazy talk," Riley says, her words getting all jumbled up.

"Riley, please, I know you like him. And I'm pretty sure he likes you," I say and her face brightens at the thought that Lucas likes her.

"Really? You think he likes me?"

"Oh totally. I already rooting for the two of you to be voted Prom Queen and King," I say as we arrive at our stop and hop off the subway.

**...!...**

School is pretty boring today, at least, up until now. Lucas sat with us at lunch and I could practically hear Riley's heart start beating a million miles a minute. But of course, throw her dad in the mix and the moment is ruined. Mr. Matthews is the definition of over-protective dad. He freaks out over any contact with boys. Well, Riley's definition of freak out. I'd give anything for my step-dad to react to things like Mr. Matthews does.

Riley doesn't get how lucky she is. Her dad is nice and there for her. My step-dad is always out until the early morning, getting drunk. And on very _special_ days, he doesn't go out until midnight and to pass the time until he leaves, he picks out every one of my flaws and punishes me for them. And let me tell you, his punishments aren't 'no phone for a week' or 'grounded for a month'. No, they're 'ten slaps on each cheek' or 'five kicks to the ribs'. Lucky me.

"So, did you do your homework?" Riley asks me as we walk to her dad's class.

"Nope, did you?" I ask, already knowing the answer. Riley always does her homework. I haven't done my homework in forever. And it's not because I don't care, it's because I can't at home. It's either I don't understand it and no ones there to help me or it's that I'm trying to avoid getting beaten to a pulp by my step-dad.

"I did and I did yours too," Riley says, a smile forming on her face. Of course she did.

**...!...**

Alright, thinking back at the whole homework rebellion, maybe it wasn't such a good idea. I mean, I didn't mean to set off the fire alarms and soak everyone with those sprinklers. I didn't even think they worked! My punishment wasn't that bad, just detention for a week and I was sent to the principal's office, which is where I sit now. The principals ranting on and on about discipline and the importance of homework, so I just tune him out.

Thinking back to the conversation I had with Mr. Mathews moments before now, I regret what I said. And I mean really regret it. Ugh, me and my big mouth. Now he's going to think something's wrong with my home-life and probably try to figure out everything. And that can't happen. I know what would happen if that happened and it's not good. My step-dad would be sent to jail, which wouldn't be that horrible, but my mom would be sent too since she knows what my step-dad does to me. Then I'd be some foster kid and be sent from house to house and probably never see Riley again. I don't want that to happen to me.

"And of course, we'll have to tell your parents," the principal says, pulling me out of my thoughts. Tell my parents? Oh no. No no no no no no. That's bad, that's really bad. If he finds out about this, I'll be lucky if I make if out of the house in one piece.

"Tell my parents? Come on sir, can't you trust me to tell them," I say, trying to be as persuasive as I can be.

"This is too big to not tell your parents Ms. Hart. I'll be giving them a call as soon as we're done here, which is right now. Good day Ms. Hart."

I'm so dead.

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><p>So, what did you guys think? How did I portray the characters? Do you like how I'm writing the story? What's going to happen to Maya when she gets home? Tell me what you think in a review. And I swear, I'll update quicker next time. And be on the look out for a one-shot I'm writing for GMW.<p>

QOTD- Fav moment in GMW so far?

Until next time...


	3. Chapter 3

I am soooooooooooooo sorry you guys! It's been so long since I updated and you have no idea how bad I feel. I've been extremely busy with school, since I just started my freshmen year and I decided to take all honors classes. I promise I'm going to try to update more. This chapter was hard to write because I don't really like writing abuse and I don't really go into any detail cause I just can't. Anyway, I hope you guys like this chapter and I hope you enjoy.

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><p>Maya's POV<p>

After my meeting with the principal, I see Riley waiting outside the school. She waited for me the entire time I was in the principal's office? That's Riley for you. That's the part of Riley I wish I was more like, the eternal optimist. I don't get how she does it, how she always stays so cheery all the time. Doesn't she know how bad the real world is. She says she's ready to face the world, but I don't think she is. She thinks the world is full of happiness and cheer, but when she finds out the truth, it's going to hit her like a brick wall.

The world isn't full of happiness or rainbows Riles. It's full of pain and disappointment. It's full of crazies and psychos. It's full of harm and danger. It's full of sadness and depression. The world crushes all your hopes and dreams faster then you can blink. Trust me, I've seen this all up close and personal. It's the world I live in. And I don't want Riley to experience that.

I know what I have to do. I have to let Riley go. I can't keep holding her back. Riley's going to do great things in the world, but not me. We live on two opposite sides of the world; her the nice and happy side and me, the sad and depressed. I don't want to be the reason Riley is exposed to the dark evils of the world and I know Mr. M feels the same way, he made that very clear today.

Even though it hurts to let her go, I know I have to.

**..!..**

I should have know Riley wouldn't let me leave her that easily. She cares too much and only sees the good in people. Eternal optimist, remember. Maybe it was a good thing that she's there for me. It's nice to take a break from the hellhole I live in and see the happy side of the world that's she lucky enough to call hers. Seeing her stand up in front of her family that like, all for me, was a different kind of feeling. It was a pretty nice feeling, knowing someone cared that much for me. And while I appreciate it, it did do some damage.

After she dragged me to her house and declared our friendship, a lot of time had passed since school had ended. I know the principal had called my parents by this time and that meant that I was going to be in big trouble. Now add the fact that I'm late coming home after school. Like, a couple hours late. I'm so dead. I'm deader then dead. I'm going to be put through so much pain, I'm going to wish I was dead.

I ran down the street to the subway and stood impatiently on the steel train, tapping my foot in a rapid fashion. I urged the train to move faster, praying to god that my step-dad was too drunk to notice I wasn't there or that he was already gone for the night. Maybe he wouldn't even care about it, maybe he'd just brush it off and ignore me. Yeah right Maya, keep on dreaming.

The train stopped at my stop and I hopped off, tearing up the steps, accidentally knocking someone's coffee over (Oops?). I raced down the streets, almost getting hit by a couple taxis and one bus. As soon as I reached my apartment building, I slowed down a little bit, trying to catch my breath before running up the stairs to my third floor apartment.

When I reached the door to my apartment, I stood outside of it for a second. Do I really want to go inside? Do I want to face the wrath of the evil step-devil? Am I ready to face all the fears that lie behind that door, awaiting me to enter? Am I ready to enter my greatest nightmare? I could easily just turn around and run away, go join some circus or something. Nah, I could never be in a circus, clowns freak me out too much. But right now, those clowns look incredibly appealing.

No, Maya, you can't. You can't run away from your problems, you have to face them head on. You have to be brave, be strong. Running away won't help with anything, he'd just find you and hurt you even more. Just get it over with.

I reached out for the door knob and twist it open, the door creaking open. I slowly stepped in, not seeing him. I sighed out of relief, stepping fully inside the apartment and closing the door behind me. As soon as the door is shut, I heard steps traveling down from upstairs. Oh no. He entered the living, glaring at me. The smell of smoke and beer is heavy, so he must have been drinking all day. He stepped close to me, close enough so I can hear his breathing. Calm down Maya, I repeated to myself, it's going to be fine, just breath.

"You, my dear, are in very big trouble," he said, smiling. Gulp.

**..!..**

A few hours later, he left. He stopped causing me pain and left to go drink himself to death. Maybe he'd finally die, oh you have no idea how much I want that to happen. For him to walking to the bar and get hit by a bus. Or for him to make the wrong guy angry and get shot or something. Anything to get him out of my life. Anything to get him to feel the pain I always feel.

I walked upstairs to my room, locking the door incase he came back. I even pushed my dresser in front of my door, just incase. After I felt safe, I let my walls down, tears began streaming down my face faster then Niagara. Everywhere hurt, every bone in my body felt like it had been stepped on by fifty dinosaurs. My arm had cuts up and down from the knife he had grabbed. My other arm had a bruise blacker then the nighttime sky. My back felt like it had been run over by an army tank and my stomach hurt from when he shoved me into the kitchen counter. Everything made me feel pain, but nothing hurt more than my heart.

Why does this always happen to me! What did I do wrong? Did I make some big mistake in my life that caused me this misfortune? Is this some way to make me realize some deep message about how much life sucks? Did I make fun of the wrong person on my way to school? What did I do to deserve this! What did I do to cause me to feel so unloved? Why does nothing every go right in my life?

With these questions flouting around my mind, I fell asleep.

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><p>So, there's the chapter. I hope you guys like it and I know it doesn't make up for all the months I've been gone, but I hope it makes you hate me less. I hope I'll have some more time on my hands to write more of this story sooner and to hopefully, make it up to you guys, I'm going to finish a one-shot I've been working on. It focussed on Cory and Riley and let's just say, some harsh words are said. Hopefully I'll finish that this weekend and upload it sometime tomorrow. If you guys have any one-shot requests, leave them below and try my hardest to write them.<p>

What did you guys like in this chapter? Anything I should change (Other then my updating speed.) What do you think will happen next? Tell me in a review. And I would greatly appreciate it if you wouldn't keep asking me to update or yell at me for not updating in the reviews. It makes me really annoyed and I almost stopped the story because of it last time. I'm a busy person and I try to update when I can. The more 'update soon' reviews I get, the longer I will take to update.

Okay, anyway, again I hope you enjoyed the chapter.

QOTD- Favorite episode of Girl Meets World so far?

Until next time...


	4. Chapter 4

a lot of people have been reviewing this and asking me to update so i decided to give this story another shot. also, while in the last chapter it was set after the first episode but now we're going to pretend that this takes place as an AU during season two and maya got detention for the week for some random reason. hope you like it.

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><p>Maya's POV<p>

Waking up this morning, all I feel is pain. My back is still really sore from last night and my stomach still feels like a hundred pound weight was dropped on it. The bruise on my left arm doesn't look any better and all the cuts on my other sting like crazy. At least I had time to clean them before I fell asleep last night and thank god they weren't super deep and barely bled. I get out of bed and ignore the pain shooting through me. This'll be harder to hide then usual.

I get dressed and make sure to cover up all the cuts and bruises. No one can see them. If they do, I'll have to leave and I can't leave Riley or my friends. I can't leave the only people on this earth who will ever love me.

After getting dressed this morning, I head over to the bathroom that's connected to my room. I open up the drawer and grab all my makeup. I begin to cover up the few bruises on my face, making sure to get it good. If this makeup comes off, I'm screwed. After covering up all my battle wounds, I slowly and carefully make my way downstairs. I stop at the bottom of the stairs and look around, searching for him. Thankfully, he's still out getting drunk so I'm safe for now.

Wandering into the kitchen, I spot a purple sticky note on the table with my mom's handwriting on it. Grabbing it, I scan over the contents:

_Hi honey, I had an early shift at the diner but I should be home for dinner tonight. Love you_

_- Mom_

I really hope that she's home for dinner. It's always a little more safer when she's around. While my step father isn't exactly a saint when she's around, he isn't as physical and somewhat behaves himself. I grab an apple from the dish in the center of the table and take a bite as I grab my bag and exit the apartment. I practically race down the steps of my apartment building, not taking any chances.

Once I'm safe on the subway, I relax a bit. I sit down and take my sketch book out of my bag, working on a sketch of family. Not my biological family, but the family I chose, the ones' that are always there for me, no matter what. A few days ago, we were assigned to draw the people close to us for an art project and it's been one of my favorite projects so far. I'd already drawn Mr and Mrs Matthews, Zay, Farkle, and Shawn and I have to finish Lucas and Riley before tomorrow, which shouldn't be a problem.

I look at the faces in my sketchbook and smile. These are the people that mean the most to me. These are the people that keep me going. These people are the reason I deal with the monster that lives a room over. They're the reason I have hope for a better future.

-.-.-.-.-

"So, what did you guys think of the math quiz?" Riley asks as we stand at our lockers, changing out our books for the second half of the day.

"It was easy," Farkle says.

"Eh, I could care less about math," I say, closing my locker before bending down to grab my bag. My back, however, isn't in the mood to be bent this way and a wave of pain ripples through me. I wince, carefully pulling my bag over my shoulders.

"You okay Maya?" Lucas asks, noticing my pain.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I fell asleep in an weird position last night and my back's a little sore due to it," I say, the lie coming easily. Over the year's, the lies have been coming to me easier.

"You sure you're fine?" Riley asks, giving me one of her looks that tells me she doesn't completely believe me.

"Yeah Riley, I'm fine. Don't worry about me, I'd tell you if something was wrong," I lie again. I really hate lying to my friends, but it's the only way I can keep them.

-.-.-.-.-.-

After school, I sit in Mr. Matthew's room in detention. Detention with Mr. Matthew's isn't half bad, especially compared to some of the other teachers in our school. He lets us work on other assignments and homework while we sit for an hour. I was sketching again, since it was technically an assignment. I was almost done with Lucas, I was just having some trouble getting his nose right.

I look up at the clock and notice that time's almost up. Wanting to get out of here as soon as possible, I open my bag and pack up my sketch pencils and sketchbook. However, as I close my bag, my sleeve gets caught on something and as I sit up, it rides up on my arm, exposing my bruises. I notice and pull my sleeve back now within a few seconds of the exposer. However, it's not quick enough as Mr. Matthews just happened to be looking over at the very few seconds my bruises were showing.

"Maya, where did you get that?" He asks, getting up and walking over to my desk. Uh oh. This isn't good. No one can find out about my step monster. If they find out, my mom goes to jail. When my mom goes to jail, I go into the foster care. And when I go into foster care, I go away from my friends. I don't want that to happen.

"What? Oh, those bruises," I say, trying to act like the bruises where nothing, even though Mr. Matthews clearly knew they were something. "I tripped over some of my art supplies when I woke up this morning and my arm got the worst of the fall. It's nothing."

"You sure they're nothing?" Mr. Matthews asks, looking me in the eyes. Ugh, it's so much harder to lie when someone's looking you in the eyes.

"Yes, I'm sure," I say, trying to make my voice as steady as it can be. I want to tell. I should tell. I should just tell him everything about my step dad. I'll tell him about the drinking and the drugs and the late nights and the abuse. I'll tell him everything and then I'll be safe from him. But then I won't be with my friends anymore. And that's not worth it.

"Really? Cause you know if anything's going on, you can tell me, right?" Mr. Matthews says, giving me a look that showed that he didn't believe a single word that I said.

"Yeah, I know," I say before looking at the clock, "Look at the time, detentions over. Well, I'm heading out, see ya in class tomorrow." I quickly leave the classroom before Mr. Matthews can say another word. I can't risk him finding out. I just can't.

-.-.-.-.-.-

_Third Person Point of View_

As soon as Maya leaves the classroom, Cory pulls out his phone and clicks the first number on his speed dial. He waits a few seconds before the person on the other side picks up.

"Hey, I need your help with something," he says, "It's about Maya."

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><p>I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Who do you think Cory called? Also, I was thinking of changing Maya's step father to be her uncle so let me know what you think of that in the reviews.<p>

Thanks for reading.


	5. Chapter 5

Third Person POV

Cory sits in Topanga's, a drink in front of him. The drink is untouched, as Cory is too distracted. Cory knows, he knows, that those bruises weren't caused by tripping. He knows Maya's lying. He just doesn't know how he didn't see it before. He _should _have seen it before. But he can't go back and change that now. All he can do now is try to make up for it.

The bell above the door dings and in walks Shawn. His camera hangs around his neck, a sign he's come straight from work. That doesn't surprise Cory. He knows that Maya's someone Shawn cares deeply about and Shawn would drop anything for the blonde beauty.

"Hey Shawn," Cory greets as Shawn sits across from him at one of the tables in the establishment.

"Hey Cor, I came as soon as I could," Shawn says, his eyes filled with worry, "Is she okay? You didn't say much on the phone."

"I don't know Shawn," Cory says, shaking his head, "She has bruises on her arms and she lied about how she got them."

"What? Are you sure?"

"I've known Maya her whole life, I know when she's lying," Cory says, "Plus, this isn't the first time she's been hurt. She's had cuts and bruises before but I didn't think anything of them."

"You think," Shawn says, his voice shaking slightly, "You think someone's hurting her?"

"I can't be sure, but there's been too many coincidences. Maya may not be an olympic gymnist, but she isn't a klutz. Plus, she got really defensive when I asked her where she got the bruises," Cory answers, "I think it's getting worse."

"We need to do something!"

"I know, that's why I called you."

"What can I do? We should be calling the police or child services!"

"Right now, I have no solid proof that someone's hurting her. You need to talk to her," Cory says.

"Why me? You're her father figure, you talk to her," Shawn argues, not even knowing what he would say to the girl. He isn't good at stuff like that, he isn't a father figure.

"No, I'm not, at least not anymore," Cory says, shaking his head, "Maya looks up to you Shawn, she trusts you. Besides, I already tried to talk to her and she wouldn't tell me what was going on."

"I don't know Cor. I want to help her, but I'm not good at that kind of stuff."

"You have to try Shawn."

"Alright, I'll talk to her tonight."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

Maya's POV

I sit at my desk, working on my art assignment. I really need to get this done, it's due in a few days and art is the only class I actually care about. If I'm being honest with myself, the reason I'm sketching is to distract myself. Cory saw the bruises. He saw the bruises! He knows something's wrong, I know it. Cory could always see through my lies and he definatly saw through my lies earlier. What if he called the cops? Child services? They could be on their way to the apartment right now and then my life is over. I go away and never come back, never having a home again. I don't want that, I can't have that. I can't lose my home.

Suddenly, my phone goes off, Shawn's name flashing on the screen. I put down my sketchbook, and pick up my phone. I try to ignore the feeling in my stomach, the butterflies that flutter inside. Could Cory have told Shawn? Is he calling me to tell me that he called the cops? I push those thoughts away, or try to at least, and slide my finger across the screen, answering the call.

"Hello," I say.

"Hey Maya, how's life treating you?"

"Not half bad, how's it treating you?" I answer, trying to act like everything's normal.

"Pretty good. Are you busy tonight? I have the night off from work and was thinking of having a movie marathon with some pizza. Care to join me?"

"Tonight," I say, "Oh, I don't know. I have homework and..." My brain couldn't come up with any other excuses. Truth me told, I love having movie nights at Shawn's. When I'm there, it's like nothing is wrong and my life is normal. Sitting with Shawn, eating pizza and making fun of the stupid characters on the screen, it's what I imagine kids do with their dads. And while my dad and step-monster may be horrible examples, Shawn isn't. He may not be biologicially related to me, but I'd choose him out of all the other options.

"Come on kiddo, it'll be fun. I might even attempt to make something myself tonight."

"Oh really? Now that's a show I have to see."

"So come over then. I was scrolling through Netflix and they have State Fair and Roman Holiday. I know how much you love those old classics," Shawn says. Those are some of my favorite movies. Plus, my mom's working late and my step father is already out at the bars.

"Alright fine, I'll be there in fifteen."

"I'll start cooking then."

"Try not to burn the apartment down while you're at it," I say, grabbing my sketch book and shoving it in my purse.

"Ha ha, very funny. See you soon kiddo."

"Bye," I say, hanging up. I grab my jacket from it's spot on my desk chair and throw it on. I stop at the mirror on my wall, checking to make sure everything's hidden. Cory might not have told Shawn, but I'm not going to let him find out because I didn't cover it right. I open my bedroom door and make my way down the halls of my apartment, slipping out the front door. I walk down the busy streets of NYC until I reach the subway, riding until I reach the nearest stop to Shawn's apartment. I walk more until I'm at his building. I grab the key he gave me, for emergencies or something like that, walk up the stairs to the second floor, opening the door to his apartment.

"What happened to making dinner?" I ask, smelling the pizza from the shop two minutes down the road.

"Yeah, after hanging up, I quickly remembered that I can't cook nor have the supplies to cook. So pizza it is," Shawn answers, handing me a plate with two slices of buffalo chicken pizza on it, my favorite.

"I knew you couldn't do it," I say with a smirk on my face.

"Yeah yeah, sit down and eat your pizza, I'll put the movie on in a minute," Shawn says, grabbing his own slices of pizza while I sit on one end of his couch.

"What is the movie choice tonight Ms. Hart?" Shawn asks once he sits down.

"Roman Holiday, you still haven't finished it."

"Hey, not my fault that I fell asleep. It was late!"

"Yeah yeah, just put it on." With the movie playing, this feels normal. This is what a father is supposed to be like. Watching movies together while goofing off and eating pizza. This makes me feel happy. However, once we get to the part of the movie where Ann falls asleep on the bench, that happiness goes away and turns into worry.

"So, I saw Cory today," Shawn says, putting down his empty plate.

"Oh, that's nice," I answer, trying to keep my voice steady. The butterflies come back and they're more intense then they've ever been.

"He told me about what happened in detention." Uh oh.

"Nothing happened in detention Shawn. Pay attention to the movie, this part's important," I say, trying to move the subject along.

"He told me about the bruises Maya," Shawn says, turning to face me, "You wanna tell me how you really got them?"

"I told Cory and I'm telling you Shawn, they're nothing. I tripped over some art supplies, that's it," I answer.

"Maya, we both know that's a lie," Shawn says, trying to look me in the eye but I avoid his look, "Tell me the truth. Who gave you those bruises?"

"No one," I answer in a small voice, my eyes focused on the movie.

"Maya, who gave you those bruises?" Shawn asks again, but I ignore him, keeping my focus away from him. "Maya, look at me and tell me who's hurting you." Once again, I ignore him but Shawn doesn't take that as an answer. He grabs my chin and turns my head so I'm looking him dead in the eye. "Maya, tell me so I can help you."

"You can't!" I say, my voice louder then intended. "No one can," I add, my voice softer this time.

"Yes, Maya, yes I can. I can help. Cory can help. Topanga can help. We can all help you but only if you tell us what's going on."

"No you can't. None of you can help me," I say, my walls breaking a little each time I look into Shawn's eyes, "This is something I have to deal with."

"No it's not Maya. If someone's abusing you, you can't deal with it on your own. It's not something you can just live with. It may not be that bad right now but it'll get worse and you could get seriously hurt Maya. But if you tell me who, then I can tell the police and whoever's doing it do you can go away and will never be able to hurt you again. You just need to tell me who," Shawn says, his eyes never leaving mine. My vision starts to get blurry, tears clouding my vision.

"I can't Shawn. If I tell you then my life is over. They'll go to jail and I'll have no one. I'll have to go into foster care and then I'll never see Riley or Lucas or Farkle or you again and I can't have that. I can't leave the only people who have ever loved me. If dealing with him hurting me is the price I have to pay to keep you all in my life, then fine, I can deal with the pain," I say, voicing my deepest darkest feelings that I've kept inside my whole life.

"That's not true. We'll figure something out, you don't have to go away but he can't keep hurting you. Who is it anyway? Your dad? Someone who live's in your building? Your stepdad?" When Shawn says that, I look away, breaking eye contact, all but conforming who's hurting me. "Your stepdad's the one that hurts you?"

"I have to go," I whisper, knowing I've said too much. I have to get home and try to fix this. I have to think of something, some excuse to make this all go away.

"Maya, don't," Shawn says, reaching for my arm but I'm already halfway to the door. I open the door and race down the stairs. I can hear Shawn calling my name, telling me to stay. Telling me to let him help, to stop. But I don't stop running until I'm on the subway.

Shawn can't help me. No one can.


End file.
